Survival of the Fittest
by kelseymetro
Summary: “You see Harry,”she began to explain, her brown eyes glittering; “the survival competition is a test of your endurance! Instead of people from the same houses joining up, eight people from the 7th Year will be selected to pair up and complete a maze!" AU
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. Again I ain't making any money whatsoever from this fanfiction.**

**Thought I would go for a slightly longer one this time. Enjoy.**

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"I'm a _what?_" gasped Harry.

"A wizard o'course," a voice replied.

"Oh shut up Ron," Harry said whilst laughing, "I meant the competition!"

Harry, Hermione and Ron were all gathered round the Gryffindor Common room notice board. An ingenious piece of technology placed in each of the houses' common rooms. It was connected directly to one in the staff room and each time a notice was put up there it would magically be displayed on the common room notice boards as well.

"You're a contestant Harry," Hermione said excitedly, "you see, in light of the end of our NEWTs the professors have organised a survival competition!"

Harry looked at Hermione bewildered. He could have sworn they saw the new notice appear at the same time but she had apparently read through the page long notice in 3 seconds flat! _Well no point in reading it now_, Harry thought, _Hermione can explain it better anyway._

"You see Harry," she began to explain, her brown eyes glittering; "the survival competition is a test of your endurance! Instead of people from the same houses joining up, eight people from the 7th Year will be selected to pair up and complete a maze in 3 days. Of course it's not just about finding your way out of the maze; there are other obstacles there as well. You see when the last war was thought to be over Hogwarts organised a survival competition. It's just tradition really. I've heard fascinating rumours that in Beauxbatons-" Harry interrupted her.

"Erm... that's lovely Hermione, so it's basically the Triwizard Maze all over again?" he said, looking slightly queasy. _The last one was bad enough_, he thought.

Hermione looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Well yes, I suppose it is something like that. Except instead of 3 tasks there is just the one maze and it's obviously longer as well." She said. Hermione seemed to pause, thinking about something. She looked at Harry again.

"Are you sure you're going to be alright with this Harry?" she said hesitantly.

"What you on about Hermione?!," Ron said grinning, "'course he's gonna be alright! He's Harry Potter!"

Harry looked unconvinced but seeing Hermione looking at him worriedly he pasted a quick smile on his face.

"Yeah, what Ron said," Harry chirped, "I mean, what's the worst that could happen?"

_Oh good lord, I've done it now._

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The next day, bright and early the Golden Trio made their way down to the Quidditch pitch. The maze spread out in front of them like an ocean of green. Harry himself felt a little green, truth be told. Flashes of the colour and a stone cold face staring at him we're replaying themselves in his mind. Shaking his head he went down with Hermione and Ron to the stadiums.

"Harry, my boy," Dumbledore said cheerfully, intercepting them on their way to find a seat, "you're meant to line up with the other contestants in the tent until it's time for you to be paired up."

Harry let out a quiet breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding and turned to Hermione and Ron.

"I guess I'll see you in 3 days time then," he said striving for a confident tone. By the doubtful look he received off Hermione, he obviously wasn't succeeding. He strode down the hill towards a brightly coloured Marquee. Reaching the opening he ducked his head and entered the tent.

Looking around he spotted Justin Finch Fletchley, Hannah Abbott, Mandy Brocklehurst, Terry Boot, Lavender Brown, Pansy Parkinson and... _Oh no. Please...don't let it be true!_

"Harry Potter, we meet again," sneered Draco Malfoy.

"What are you, some extra from a bad mafia movie?" Harry snapped right back. Malfoy looked confused. Harry belatedly thought that obviously Malfoy, a pureblood wizard, would not have heard of a muggle term like mafia or even the invention of movies. _My wit is once again wasted,_ Harry sighed in his head.

"Potter, are you high or something? What the bloody hell is a mafia movie?" Malfoy demanded.

_Oh I haven't got the patience for this now, _Harry thought.

"You know what, never mind Malfoy," he muttered and went to sit down on the bench in the far corner of the tent, incidentally as far away from Malfoy as he could get. Muffled voices approaching the tent interrupted whatever comeback Malfoy was planning to say and he closed his mouth again with an audible click. Dumbledore, McGonagall and Snape entered the tent, robes swishing behind them. Dumbledore stopped and looked at the students, beaming.

"Well gather round now children," he began, "I will now explain the rules to you and perform a spell that will randomly pair you off." The 8 of them gathered round in a circle and stood silently, waiting for Dumbledore to continue.

"Firstly, no illegal spells are allowed to be cast. Any student discovered casting these spells will automatically be disqualified and possibly expelled. Of course I shouldn't need to tell you this." Dumbledore announced. Harry gave a sly look towards Malfoy. _Hmmm I wouldn't be too sure in Malfoy's case. _He thought.

"Now, secondly, each of the pairs will be setting off at a different entrance of the maze and the first pair to reach the centre wins!" Dumbledore continued, "The pairs will be as following:" He waved his wand in the air and a thin stream of letters came out of the end.

"Justin and Mandy, Hannah and Terry, Lavender and Pansy, and finally..."

_Oh bloody hell._

"Draco and Harry"

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**I will update as soon as possible. Second chapter in the next few days or so.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. Again I ain't making any money whatsoever from this fanfiction.**

**Please review when finished :D**

**Got bored so here's the second chapter folks...**

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Last time...

"Now, secondly, each of the pairs will be setting off at a different entrance of the maze and the first pair to reach the centre wins!" Dumbledore continued, "The pairs will be as following:" He waved his wand in the air and a thin stream of letters came out of the end.

"Justin and Mandy, Hannah and Terry, Lavender and Pansy, and finally..."

_Oh bloody hell._

"Draco and Harry"

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"WHAT?!" bellowed Harry, even though he knew it was coming.

"WHAT?!" yelled Draco.

"MALFOY?!

"POTTER?!"

"ARE YOU BLOODY KIDDING ME?!" they screeched in unison.

Harry glared at Draco, who in turn, glowered right back. _I can't believe this! 3 days in Malfoy's company! I'll go mental after 3 minutes!_ The two of them stood like that for a few minutes until a soft cough was heard behind them. Turning to the culprit they froze, embarrassed discovering everybody looking at them with varying degrees of amusement on their faces. Harry looked down at his feet, his face burning.

"No, I'm sorry Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Potter, I am not as you aptly put it 'bloody kidding' you", Dumbledore said with a slight smile on his face, "you two are now partners and will have to get over any petty disagreements you may have had in the past."

Harry stared incredulously at Dumbledore._ Petty disagreements?! We've hated each other for 7 years!_ He sighed. _Here goes nothing_. He turned to Malfoy and looked at him apprehensively. Malfoy was staring right back at Harry, an expression of slight horror that had come over his face when Dumbledore had said they would have to 'get over and petty disagreements'. Obviously Malfoy was having the same thoughts as Harry.

Looking towards the other pairs they all seemed to be handling being together well. Apart from Pansy and Lavender though. Lavender had Pansy in a headlock. From what Harry could hear, Pansy 

had apparently made a small remark to Lavender about how stupid she was to have a flower for a name. _Not the brightest spark is she?_ He thought, disguising a laugh as a cough.

Remembering himself, Harry turned back to Dumbledore and the others quickly followed suit.

"Now Professor Snape and McGonagall will each take a pair to a maze entrance whereas I will guide two pairs to their starting points." Said Dumbledore, "If Pansy and Lavender would follow Professor McGonagall and if Terry and Hannah would go with Professor Snape, I will escort Justin and Mandy, and Draco and Harry."

Each group set off to their entry points. Harry followed Dumbledore, glancing from time to time at Malfoy.

"Good luck Harry," a voice to his left said. Harry jumped; he'd forgotten Justin was there. Mandy was in front with Dumbledore and seemed to be reciting names of spells under her breath, looking frighteningly like Hermione for a second.

"Oh... you too Justin," Harry replied, trying to smile. Justin was convinced though and smiled back at Harry. Dumbledore's group came in sight of the stadiums and a roar went up as the crowd spotted Harry and the other contestants. Draco looked in his element, waving at the Slytherins and swaggering forward. Harry himself felt self conscience as eyes turned and stared at him. He always had hated the limelight. A voice interrupted his ponderings however.

"Draco and Harry, I shall drop you off here and continue you one with Mandy and Justin.Oh and before I forget, here are your backpacks. They should have everything you need" Dumbledore said, handing over two big backpacks. "At the canon please proceed into the maze" He nodded once encouragingly and then walked on with Mandy and Justin. Harry looked around. He hadn't even noticed they were at a gap in the hedge, if you could call it a hedge. The walls were 8 feet high and loomed above Harry menacingly.

"Scared Potter?" Malfoy muttered from the corner of his mouth.

Harry glanced at Malfoy but he was looking straight ahead. Harry couldn't decide if Draco was being serious or merely taunting Harry. Harry fought back a grin however, reminiscing.

"You wish," He replied.

Malfoy looked sharply at Harry and, against his will, let a small smile curve the corners of his mouth. There wasn't a lot of time to mess around though as Dumbledore's voice, with the help of a Sonorus spell, filled the grounds.

"Welcome students to the Second Survival Competition of Hogwarts! We have 4 pairs for you to cheer today, Pansy Parkinson and Lavender Brown, Justin Finch Fletchley and Mandy Brocklehurst, Terry Boot and Hannah Abbott and finally, Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy!" A huge cheer rose from the crowds at the last two names from the Gryffindor and Slytherin houses, at least until they noticed the other house cheering and immediately stopped.

Harry and Draco looked at each other quickly, almost laughing but then turned to face the maze again.

"Remember competitors, the same rules for the Triwizard Tournament apply," Dumbledore carried on, "some of you have had more practice at these than others." He looked at Harry, his eyes twinkling, "send up red sparks with your wand if you are in trouble and competitors..." He paused for a second before continuing, "be prepared for anything."

A huge _BANG _then rang out across the grounds.

Harry and Draco sprinted forwards, side by side, and quickly put on their backpacks. Harry drew out his wand, having the foresight of the last Triwizard Tournament to know he would soon need it. They ran together, neither of them speaking for a few minutes. Their breathing quickly became heavier as they approached the first fork in the path. They both stopped simultaneously.

Intuition kicking in, Harry placed his wand on his hand and whispered "_Point Me_". The wand spun around in a quick circle before pointing straight into the middle of the edge in front of them. _Well that was helpful,_ Harry thought_, it didn't tell us to go left or right!_

"Well that was helpful," Malfoy scoffed, echoing Harry's very own thoughts. Of course this statement immediately made Harry defensive.

"Yeah, well at least I'm trying to do something!" Harry said furiously, "I mean, the spell told us one thing; that it doesn't matter if we go left or right!"

"Well then," Malfoy sneered, "I'll be going right!"

Harry gaped at Malfoy. Weren't they meant to be doing this together? Why was Malfoy trying to make things complicated?

"What do you mean, _you'll_ be going right?" Harry questioned, "I 'm the one with the experience here! I say we go left!" Harry wasn't sure why he was being difficult, but Malfoy's tone of voice was really starting to grate on his nerves. _Egotistical Bastard!_

"Yeah and that last maze really worked out well for you, didn't it Potter?" Malfoy said spitefully.

Harry's breath caught. A lump seemed to have stuck in his throat and his eyes were burning slightly. _I can't believe he just said that. _Harry blinked quickly and fury rose inside him.

"Fine! You go right, I'm going left!" Harry snarled and swivelled quickly on the balls of his feet. He started off on a jog, refusing to look back at Malfoy. _Just when I think we're getting along he has to be such a...Malfoy!_

Harry's blood was still pounding in his head when a muffled yell broke him out of his thoughts. He turned around, facing the way he had just come. Without thinking he broke into a run, heading towards the yell. Another shout came from in front of him. Harry ran faster and turned the corner. _Oh shit, that sounded like... _ Harry skidded to a stop.

_Malfoy._

Well, good news was he had found Malfoy who, if Harry's deductions were correct, had being doing the yelling.

The bad news was however, that Malfoy was yelling because one of Hagrid's Acromantulas had just taken a chunk out of his leg.

Harry sprinted forwards, raised his wand and shouted, "Impedimenta!" The spell hit the spider, but the most it did was slow it down. It raised its head and went to grasp Harry with its pincers. Harry dived rolled to the side, missing the massive spider by a few centimetres. He rushed forward to the collapsed Malfoy's side, keeping his eye on the spider which had fallen short and into a hedge. It was untangling itself and Harry knew he had to move quickly before it came back.

"Malfoy!" Harry said, shaking his shoulder trying to get him to move, "we have to go!" Malfoy made an undistinguishable noise, his face deathly pale and the wound on his leg bleeding profusely. _Shit_, Harry couldn't help thinking. A noise behind him made him turn his head again, and he cursed himself for not watching the spider. Diving to the left, he narrowly missed its razor sharp pincers. He ran forwards, trying to lead the monster away from Malfoy. It took the bait and lumbered towards him.

Harry waited until it was a mere metre in front of him before aiming his wand carefully between its eyes. He only had one shot at this.

"Stupefy!" Harry said confidently and the spider flew backwards and slumped over. The desire to protect someone had obviously lent power to his spell... the same thing had happened before in the battle with Voldemort.

Harry rushed forward again to Malfoy. From his knowledge of basic healing techniques, he quickly cleaned and healed the wound as best as he could. It wasn't perfect but it should at least hold for a few hours. He would have to renew it then, but this would stop Malfoy from bleeding to death until then. Harry sat back exhausted and waited for Malfoy to wake up.

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**Thank you so much for the people that have reviewed 'The Ingenious Plan' especially JennBenn3148, whose review made me beam! I'll update tomorrow earliest. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: No, the ownership of Harry Potter has ****not**** changed in the last 24 hours. Still belongs to J.K Rowling.**

**Thanks to everyone for the pointers and encouragement. I will try to make the chapters longer :)**

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Harry swore he only had his eyes closed for a second, but when he opened them again it was dark and he was looking straight into the furious face of Draco Malfoy. He blinked a few times, trying to come up with a plausible explanation of why Malfoy would be staring at him at night time. Didn't they sleep in two different dorms?

"Potter!" Draco began furiously, "why the hell didn't you wake me up?! We're probably coming last in the bloody competition now!"

_Oh right. Survival Contest._

Harry ignored Draco and decided to check their surroundings first. After all, a giant spider had apparently snuck up on Draco. What would be next? A basilisk? Shaking his head at his ridiculous thoughts he went back to scanning their surroundings. Since Malfoy had gone right the path looked slightly different to Harry's. It went on for several 100 yards with various turnings coming off. It looked odd though. Harry couldn't think why, but then it struck him; it looked too big to be in the maze. Harry had seen it from the outside but this maze was about 4 or 5 times bigger than it appeared. _Magic, I suppose._

"Are you ignored me?!" Draco demanded. Apparently he had been ranting the entire time Harry had been thinking. Rolling his eyes he stood up quickly and pointed his wand at a spot behind Draco's head.

"Watch out Malfoy!" Harry said loudly. Malfoy spun round, withdrawing his wand from his robes. _Bloody idiot probably had it in there when one of Hagrid's delightful friends attacked._ Harry swung his backpack onto his back and walked past him.

"What?" Malfoy said, sounding a little panicked, "What do you see?!" Harry shrugged his shoulders and continued down the path.

"Nothing," he said nonchalantly, "it was just an effective way to shut you up"

Malfoy stood up looking offended and stuck his nose in the air. Apparently he had decided that speaking to a lowly being like Potter wasn't worth his time. He took a step gingerly and transferred his weight to his injured leg. He made a hissing noise and Harry turned around quickly at the sound, thinking that maybe his joke about Basilisks had jinxed them. Seeing a brief look of pain cross Malfoy's face he quickly retraced his steps backwards and pulled one of Draco's arms around his shoulders. It would take another day for Malfoy's leg to heal completely.

Malfoy looked disgruntled at this but remembering his oath not to speak to Potter he quickly shut his opening mouth.

_Aaaah_, Harry couldn't help thinking,_ the only good Malfoy is a silent one._

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Malfoy and Harry had been walking for over 2 hours by now. It was still dark and they could see a few stars twinkling in the sky. Harry had obviously been asleep till about 7. Not surprising as he had very little sleep the night before. Nightmares of flashes of green light and a whispered _"Kill the spare_" had kept him up until the early hours of the morning. Even though Voldemort was gone the memory of some of the things he had done was still fresh in Harry's mind.

Stopping every turning to whisper a quick _Point Me_ spell, Harry and Malfoy had made quick progress into the middle of the maze. They still had a way to go thanks to Dumbledore's spell on the maze but they at least knew they were closer than they had been before.

Just then, Malfoy stumbled slightly on a rock. Harry took a quick glance at him and was shocked to find his face pale as a sheet of paper and with a permanent grimace set on it. _Bloody Slytherins and their pride. _

"Maybe we should sit down for a bit, eat something?" Harry ventured.

"I don't need your pity Potter," Malfoy huffed, momentarily forgetting his vow of silence, "I'm fine!"

"Obviously you're not" Harry argued and then delivered the killing blow; "You're slowing us up"

Malfoy froze for a second and pulled away from Harry.

"Fine" he said monotonously. Sitting down gracefully he leant against the hedge, an expression of relief passing over his face. Harry too sat down and pulled off his backpack. Unbuckling the straps he took a quick look inside and then crowed with delight.

"Look!" he said excitedly, "Food!" Malfoy rolled his eyes, apparently deciding not to comment and leant his head back.

Harry dived into the backpack and retrieved a flask of pumpkin juice and several snacks for the both of them. He handed half to Malfoy and began to devour the rest himself. Malfoy looked faintly disgusted by Harry's manners but Harry couldn't have cared less. He had missed dinner and lunch because of sleeping and he was starved. Wiping his hands on his trousers he took a swig from the pumpkin juice flask. Memories of the fake Mad-eye doing the same thing from fourth year came rushing into his mind's eye and he spat the juice onto the floor.

"Potter" Malfoy said, looking revolted, "I'm pretty sure that's for drinking not watering the plants" Harry wasn't listening though. He didn't know what was wrong with him. First the flashbacks outside the maze and now visions of Mad-eye. He shook his head, putting it down to tiredness, and pulled out his wand.

Malfoy looked slightly alarmed for a second but when Harry gently grasped his leg and pulled back his trouser leg he went back to delicately eating his sandwiches. Harry gasped feeling the damp material. Malfoy's wound had started bleeding again and had soaked through his trousers! The Acromantula's venom obviously had some chemicals in it that ate through any magical healing spells cast on it in a couple of hours.

"Malfoy!" Harry shouted enraged, "Why didn't you say your wound had come open again!"

Malfoy shrugged his shoulders looking unconcerned but Harry knew better. _Too bloody proud again to even ask me to heal a life threatening wound for him._ Now because of the venom Harry would have to keep applying healing spells every few hours. _Just what he needed. Not._ Feeling slightly ashamed of his selfish thoughts, Harry began to cast spells that removed venom from the bloodstream and clean the wound. It wouldn't remove all the venom but it would keep it from poisoning Draco. He next cast a spell that was the equivalent to a muggle stitching up the wound. Harry poised his head to the side thinking for a few minutes. Coming to a decision he rootled in his back pack again and pulled out a spare shirt. He then ripped this into pieces and tied it around Malfoy's leg.

Harry sat back on his haunches and wiped a hand over his forehead. He looked back at Malfoy's face to find him staring at Harry.

"You done now?" Malfoy said almost impatiently. He had finished his food and was waiting for Harry to finish. Harry huffed and started to pack things back into his bag again._ Bloody ungrateful bastard. I should have let him heal his own leg._ Even though he realised his thoughts were stupid as Malfoy had looked barely fit to walk, let alone cast complicated healing spells on himself. The food and rest had done him good, not to mention Harry's healing spells, and his face had regained what little colour it actually had in the first place.

Harry finished packing and turned back to Malfoy, who looked contemplative.

"What now?" Harry sighed. _Maybe Malfoy was going to thank him. Yeah sure..._

"I'm just wondering how many bones you've managed to vanish from my leg" Malfoy said with a smirk. Harry saw red.

"You ungrateful spoilt PRAT!" Harry raged, "I should have left you to it and waited for your leg to drop off! You can't even be a decent human being for 3 days! Not really a surprise considering who your father was!" Harry knew this was a low blow. Malfoy's father had died in jail the year before. He immediately regretted his words when pink splodges appeared on Draco's cheeks.

"You shut up about my father Potter!" Malfoy yelled, "at least mine managed to stay alive until the second war!"

Harry and Malfoy were facing each other, arms by their sides and glaring daggers to the other. Harry still hadn't forgotten about the comment from earlier and now the slight against his father. He was positively fuming. The two were shouting loud enough to wake the dead... and attract any creatures that might be in the vicinity.

"Argh! Just shut up Malfoy!" he screamed in return, "you're so stuck up and arrogant! You're exactly like a carbon copy of Lucius, evil and all!"

The air around them had chilled suddenly, spreading from behind Harry but neither boy seemed to notice, too busy shouting and insulting the other.

"Well we can't all be fucking Saints like you Potter!" Malfoy snarled, "Oh wait... I'm pretty sure they don't let murderers become saints!"

Harry gasped. Malfoy had hit a sore spot that Harry hadn't even discussed with Ron and Hermione. He was after all, a murderer. He had been the one who had finished Voldemort off once and for all.

Harry withdrew his wand and the curse flew from his mouth, anger fuelling it.

"Rictusempra!" He bellowed. Malfoy flew backwards into the hedge and he landed heavily on his leg. Harry felt a second of remorse before clutching his throat. It felt like he was being strangled. Malfoy had stood up and was watching Harry with satisfaction.

"F...Finite incantatem" Harry managed to rasp out, pointing his wand to his throat. The choking sensation stopped immediately and he once again turned his wand on Malfoy.

"Expelliarmus!" he said scratchily. Malfoy's wand flew into Harry's hand and Harry smirked in satisfaction.

Malfoy looked furious and did something Harry never in a thousand years would expect; he flew forwards and punched Harry across the face. Harry's head snapped to the side and white dots exploded in his vision for a second. Pain blossomed in his cheek and he stared dazedly at Malfoy. Instead of his vision becoming clearer it became more blurred... Harry suddenly noticed the cold. Harry felt his own breath catch in his chest, but the cold was deeper than his skin. It was inside his heart... Memories came flooding back...

'_Without warning, Harry's scar exploded with pain. It was agony such as he had never felt in his entire life; his wand slipped from his fingers as he put his hands over his face; his knees buckled; he was on the ground and he could see nothing at all, his head was about to split open._

_From far away, above his head, he heard a high, cold voice say, "Kill the spare"._

_A swishing noise and a second voice, which screeched the words to the night: "Avada Kedavra!"_

_A blast of green light blazed through Harry's eyelids... and then..._

"_Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!"_

"_Stand aside you silly girl...stand aside, now..."_

"_Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead-"_

_A shrill voice was laughing, the woman was screaming'_

Harry's vision went black.

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**You, my clever readers have probably guessed what is going on but, in case you haven't... review and I'll update soon ;-)**

**Again, thank you so much for the reviews so far. I'm amazed by the number of you that have put a story alert on this :D It truly warms my heart.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I repeat: I do NOT own Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy does...oh sorry! I meant J.K Rowling does! :P**

**Review if you enjoy, which I hope you will :)**

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_Last time:_

"_Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!"_

"_Stand aside you silly girl...stand aside, now..."_

"_Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead-"_

_A shrill voice was laughing, the woman was screaming'_

Harry's vision went black.

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Draco watched, anger flowing through his veins, as Potter reeled back from the punch he had just delivered to his left cheek. His head had snapped to the side and Draco felt smug satisfaction that overruled the pain in his knuckles. The satisfaction of beating Potter faded into annoyance as Draco realised he had resorted to Muggle techniques. Imagine! A Malfoy punching someone! It was all Potter's fault of course for disarming him. _But then..._ ,Draco felt a twinge of self-loathing,_ I had used that curse. The one father taught me._

Draco didn't hate his father. He respected him, Lord knows you would have to be mental not to. Well, either that or a masochist, which Draco certainly wasn't. He had to admit Harry did do a good job on fixing up his leg. It was just... in some weird twisted way; Draco felt that he was honouring his father's memory by carrying on the feud with Potter. He supposed he was partly doing it for himself. Having his pride crushed in every quidditch match against Potter made him turn bitter and resentful towards the boy. This was probably part of the reason it felt so satisfactory hitting him.

What wasn't so satisfactory was Potter's face afterwards. It was raw terror. Draco had no idea, punching Potter could illicit such as response. I mean what a bloody pansy! Muggles did it all the time and they certainly didn't look at the person they were fighting with terror. Draco rolled his eyes slightly but then widened them as Potter's eyes rolled back and he fell backwards and hit the floor. Draco raced forwards to catch him, ignoring twinges of pain going up his leg, but just missed him.

_Seriously! Fainting because someone hit him?! What kind of a Gryffindor is he? _Draco stowed his wand away in his pocket and then checked Potter's pulse, just to be sure. When he felt it pulsing there steadily, if not a little rapidly, he moved away and settled near his backpack. He might as well be comfortable when the oaf woke up.

It was about this point that Draco felt the soul numbing coldness. The iciness that seemed to go straight down to his heart and take all his most horrible memories to the surface; the day he got the letter telling him his father had died, the day his aunt Bellatrix had tortured him and finally the last battle. Draco finally heard the sound his ears had been straining to hear; the long, slow, rattling 

breath of the creature that was trying to suck more than just air from its surroundings. He slowly raised his head from its resting point on his chest and saw the dementor floating around the corner in front of him. He jumped up slowly, as to not attract too much attention to himself and withdrew his wand from his pocket.

The dementor seemed to be ignoring Draco, and instead focusing its attention solely on Potter. Half of Draco, the Slytherin half, was telling him to let it. Better Potter than him. But the bigger part, the better part, was nagging him, saying Potter had risked his life to save him. _ Better to think of this as a challenge then, _Draco thought. He heaved a big breath and slowly put one foot in front of the other. Draco had learnt of course, the Patronus charm but had never quite had a memory strong enough to keep the corporeal form for long. _Better that then nothing._

The dementor swiftly looked up, its tattered robes billowing around it. It glance at Draco and then at Potter again. Then back at Draco. In a weird way it was almost comical. Draco certainly had never seen an indecisive dementor. They seemed to suck the happiness out of several people at once and never...focused on one...person...at a...time. _Why would Dumbledore have a dementor in the maze anyway? He hates the things! _Realisation struck Draco and he confidently walked past Potter and up to the dementor. He recalled all his knowledge of third year and Professor Lupin's class and prayed that he wasn't wrong.

The dementor quickly focused on him and reared up as if to strike, but then...

...quickly changed into Bellatrix Lestrange. Her dark hair wild about her hair and she was dressed in Azkaban prison robes. She had a crazy look in her eye but no, Draco wasn't scared. To the best of his knowledge, dear Aunt Bellatrix had died in the last battle and by the hand of Neville Longbottom, no less. Draco was definitely surprised at that one. His attention quickly became focused on the hand she was raising with her wand in it. She might only be a boggart but she could still do some damage.

Draco stood firmly in front of Harry and thought hard. He raised his wand and said clearly, with a hint of a smirk on his face, "Ridikulus!" 'Bellatrix' froze and all her hair dropped off. Draco found this a little morbid actually but forced himself to laugh loudly at her. She froze and popped out of existence.

_Pfff,_ thought Draco,_ Dumbledore didn't even put a healthy one in!_ Feeling extremely proud of himself he smiled and turned back around to Potter. _Still lying on the floor then, Lazy lump!_ Draco rolled his eyes. He settled down by his backpack and thought hard. _Potter is out for the count, I'm fairly tired after all that work and it's getting dark anyway. Hmm... Might as well set up camp for the night._ Draco rummaged through his backpack and found what he was looking for; a tent.

Feeling extremely pleased, he placed the canvas and poles on the floor and waved his wand at it. The tent immediately flew up and assembled itself. Draco walked in and inspected it quickly. It wasn't up to a Malfoy's standards and it smelt faintly of cats, but it would do for a few nights. Walking back out, he turned back to Potter and grasped him under his arms. Half-pulling, half-dragging, he finally got him in the tent and onto a bed. He quickly placed a ward around the tent, crawled into bed and closed his eyes. His last thought for the night was: _Maybe it wasn't the punch that made Potter faint. After all, in 3__rd__ year..._

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Harry sat up with a gasp. He panted heavily, feeling cold sweat slide down his forehead and down his face. He could still hear the rasping breaths and the screams of his mother echoing in his ears. Harry shuddered and tried to calm down. His heart was beating furiously in his chest and he quickly looked around him to make sure it was gone. Confident he was alone; he put his head in his hands and gave a dry sob. The painful memories of Cedric's death and what he could remember of his mother's drove shard-like sensations of pain into his heart. He had failed the Triwizard Tournament. Everybody said that he had won, but he knew if it wasn't for Cedric he wouldn't have gotten to the cup. Cedric had died because he was, as Voldemort had so aptly put it, a spare. Fury at Voldemort rose up again, unbidden. There was nothing he could do now though. Voldemort was dead and Harry had taken vengeance for all the innocent people that had died in the war.

Harry shook his head, gaining a little control over his emotions, and raised his head. When he met the silver eyes of Draco Malfoy, he started and then quickly turned away. He didn't want Malfoy to see him in this vulnerable state. It would only give him more ammunition to taunt him with. When no hateful comments came however, Harry slowly turned back, thinking that maybe Malfoy had gone away again. He was wrong though. Malfoy was waiting, sitting up in his bed, with his eyes trained on Harry's face. He could see him perfectly as well in the early morning light, and that included the tear track that had made its way down Harry's face.

"What do you hear?" Malfoy asked softly, "What do you see?"

Harry looked at him confused for a second._ What does he mean? Its quiet out, I can't hear anything._

"With the boggart" Malfoy continued.

"Boggart?" Harry asked confused, "I thought there was only a..." _Oh._ Harry felt instantly ashamed of himself. Remus had taken time out of his schedule to teach Harry how to defend against Dementors. He even used boggarts to teach Harry, but Harry had been taken by surprise and fainted.

Draco seemed to realise what he had asked of Harry was personal and stopped staring at him. He seemed to be trying to decide something.

"I see my Aunt Bellatrix" came a soft voice a few minutes later. Harry whipped his head round to look at Draco. _Why was Draco afraid of his own Aunt?_

"She tortured me when I refused to take the Dark Mark" Draco explained. Harry looked at Draco horrified. Who would torture their own nephew? Bellatrix Lestrange apparently.

Harry looked down at his lap. Draco had trusted him with something personal. Maybe it was his time to do the same. He took a deep breath and let it out again.

"Usually, the boggart turns into a dementor," Harry said, "because when I get close to one I can hear Voldemort murdering my mother." Harry heard Draco's sharp intake of breath. He carried on, "this time however I first heard Cedric Diggory being killed before my mother. I don't know why, it's never happened before. Maybe the maze is bringing back memories I would rather not think about. " Harry relaxed slightly. It was off his chest now. He just hoped Draco wouldn't tease about his obvious weakness. _But then this is Malfoy._

"We should get going." was all that Draco said. He stood up and grabbed his back pack. Harry looked stunned for a bit, but then was grateful he wouldn't have to talk about it. Harry stood up and pulled his own backpack on. He stood outside the tent and waited for Draco. He was feeling like sticky from the cold sweat he had awoken in and quickly waved his wand over his head, casting a quick _Scourgify._ Of course, scourgify was invented as a household spell and the feeling of it was like someone running polish all over his skin but, it made him feel better than before.

Draco finally exited the tent looking as fresh as daisies, something Harry felt incredibly jealous about, and rummaged in his back pack for a moment. He quickly found what he was looking for and handed some to Harry.

"Chocolate?" Harry questioned.

Draco gave his half smile and waved his wand at the tent, packing it away again.

"Thank You" said Harry, meaning both about the chocolate and Draco saving him from the boggart.

Harry couldn't help thinking that the chocolate was Draco's way of saying sorry.

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In the last four hours they had taken twelve lefts, three rights, gone back and retraced their footsteps about twenty times but had yet to encounter any more dangerous creatures. Now Harry Potter was not paranoid, but by all rights he should have been. Given that he had a crazy psychopath with superiority issues after him for sixteen years. He was getting increasingly anxious though, due to the fact they had seen neither hide nor hair of any other contestants or delightful monsters that would love to devour a chunk of flesh from his leg. Draco didn't look bothered though. He was walking next to Harry, slightly limping and with an almost bored expression on his face.

Coming round the corner, Harry once again realised he had spoken too soon.

"Hello Justin!" Harry called, waving his hand. Malfoy made a disbelieving sound to his right, but Harry ignored him. _Unfriendly prat._

Justin smiled and walked towards Harry. Mandy could be seen just coming around the corner, looking exhausted.

"Hi Harry!" Justin said excitedly, "Meet any creatures yet?" Harry smiled back in relief. It was nice having someone to talk to; Malfoy being the sociable creature he was. Not.

"Fine Justin," he replied, "met an Acromantula and a Boggart but apart from that it's been quiet"

Justin looked faintly worried at the sound of an Acromantula as he looked at Draco's leg. Harry could understand why; it looked like it needed another healing session. Draco however, saw the direction of their gazes and turned away. Harry rolled his eyes at Justin, who grinned.

"Well," Justin began, "we saw a Hinkypunk and almost got swallowed into a bog but we got away okay."

"What are you on about, Fletchley, " Mandy interrupted, "YOU saw the Hinkypunk and nearly got pulled in the bog, I had to come rescue you!"

Justin blushed to his hairline and Harry hid a grin behind his hand. _I think they work quite well together, _Harry mused. _Justin kept up Mandy's spirits and she helped him out of sticky situations._

_Not like me and Malfoy. We wouldn't be able to work well together if it was a life or death situation!_

Harry tuned back into the conversation Justin was having with Mandy.

"Well I did share that chocolate cake with you at lunch..." Justin said.

Harry had lost the thread of the conversation during his thoughts and was now completely lost. He didn't have to worry though as Malfoy quickly interrupted them.

"Potter, would you mind hurrying up your little W.I meeting so we can get out of this bloody maze?" Harry shot Malfoy a dirty look but decided he had a point. He turned back to Justin and Mandy.

"Well, we'd better be going," Harry said awkwardly, "I'll see you at the end?"

"Sure Harry!" Justin chirped, "Bye then!" The two pairs walked off in different directions; Harry and Malfoy going left, Mandy and Justin going right.

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**I typed chapters 3 and 4 in one night so I'm rather exhausted now. Review please :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: No, I do not own Harry Potter. I'd like to... but unfortunately that hasn't worked out for me yet.**

**You guys leave the best reviews XD But even if you don't have any comments, just a thumbs up or down is really good :)**

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Left...right...left again...twice they found themselves facing dead ends. Harry was becoming increasingly frustrated with their progress. He did the _Point Me_ spell again and found they were going too far east. Sighing, he signalled to Malfoy and they retraced their footsteps. After leaving Mandy and Justin, Harry had felt quite lonely. Ever since the tent incident, as Harry was now dubbing it, there had been a tense, awkward...feeling between them. Harry didn't know how else to explain it. He had spent the most part of seven years thinking Malfoy was evil to the core and couldn't be a decent person to save his life... but he'd saved Harry from the boggart. He was still an annoying prat as far as Harry was concerned, but he had a side to him Harry had not seen before.

Thinking about it, Harry realised he should have seen Malfoy wasn't all bad sooner. He had led the Slytherins on a campaign against Voldemort, but Harry had always seen that as a way for Malfoy to save his own skin. There wasn't a lot of point in pondering it now; Harry would only get more confused.

Harry snuck a quick glance to his right at Malfoy's face. He seemed like he was concentrating deeply on something. Harry didn't know what. After all, there was only a boring grey path in front of them and walls of green hedges surrounding them. It was actually a good thing Harry wasn't claustrophobic. The walls did seem like they were pressing in on them... Harry shook his head. He had grown up in a cupboard for ten years. You would think he would be able to cope with a maze for three days and it was only the second day anyway!

A touch on Harry's left arm caught his attention. He and Malfoy seemed to be walking closer together now so Harry just put it down to Malfoy's arm brushing his. He looked at Malfoy again. He was still concentrating hard in front of him. Harry rolled his eyes. _Probably didn't even notice he touched me._

They walked on in silence once more. Harry was getting quite fed up to be honest. Bored out of his mind, he struggled to find a topic to talk about. _Quidditch? No that might bring up old rivalries. School? No I'll just look like I'm trying too hard... _Harry almost huffed in frustration, but caught himself just in time. He would look mental if he went about huffing to himself. Malfoy would think he was stuck with a disturbed person.

_Since when did I care what Malfoy thought about me?_ Harry couldn't help thinking.

A touch on Harry's right arm brought his attention back to the present. He looked over at Malfoy once again. Draco was staring back at him this time. He must have felt it too. Harry moved away from Malfoy, only to find his left arm brushed against the walls of the maze.

Harry froze.

_The first touch was on my...left arm, the arm on the opposite side of Malfoy. I wasn't imagining things! This path really is getting smaller!_

Harry looked up with wide eyes at Malfoy, who had stopped just after Harry.

"Do you think it's getting smaller as well?" Malfoy asked, his eyes searching Harry's face.

Harry looked around at the hedges, and could clearly see they were moving in a centimetre at a time. Harry looked at the path in front of them. They only had about thirty metres to go to the end of this path and out into a fork. Harry calculated the distance they had to go by the room that was left in the quickly shrinking path. Yes...they could just about make it!

"I think we should run for" Harry suggested hurriedly, looking at Malfoy. Draco nodded quickly once and they both set off sprinting. The end of the path was getting closer and closer, but so were the walls. Harry and Draco were now pressed closely together, side by side. Branches were scratching Harry's arms, ripping through his sleeves. The cuts left behind stung, but that wasn't Harry's worst problem at the moment.

The distance between them became so short; Harry decided to run behind Draco. Malfoy seeing Harry had left his side, turned his head back to make sure he was alright. Harry nodded quickly, reassuring Draco. He was panting heavily now as his legs began to burn. They still had a mere ten metres left to run, but they were nearly out of room. Heart pounding as they neared the end of the path, Harry and Malfoy put on a burst of speed. Draco shot out into the fork and Harry followed quickly behind, ramming into Draco's back. The two tripped and rolled over, finally stopping before the hedge.

Harry's chest heaved as he laid there, his head cushioned on something firm and warm. That had been too close. They were seconds away from becoming nasty looking stains on the hedges. _Well maybe that was exaggerating slightly._

Harry, finally getting is breath back, looked at the path they had just came from. It was back to its normal size. _Had they just imagined it?_ Another occurred to him and he raised his head and searched for Draco.

A small cough from below him gave him a clue as to where Draco was.

Harry whipped his head downwards. The warm, firm thing his head had been cushioned on was Draco's chest. Slowly, Harry ran his eyes up to meet Draco's. He was staring at Harry with an amused expression on his face. Harry could feel his face heating up and spreading down his neck. They were so close Harry could feel Draco's laboured breathing move his hair. He stared into Draco's eyes. A warm foreign feeling was spreading through his chest on his left side.

"Potter...as nice as this is," Draco began rasping, "I'm pretty sure you've cracked one of my ribs."

Warm fuzzy feeling disappeared and Harry jumped off Draco quickly.

"Oh shit!" Harry began to panic, "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to! We we're just running and I tripped into you and then you fell and we rolled and I landed and-"

"Potter" Draco interrupted, "I know you didn't do it on purpose, but I could do with a hand here."

Harry looked down at Draco's chest. On his right side was a long gash from the hedge that had been slowly bleeding through his shirt. Harry realised belatedly that the blood seeping through his own shirt from Draco's was probably the warm feeling he noticed from earlier. He ignored that thought for the moment and set his attention on Draco who was getting up, wincing from pains in his chest.

"Here," Harry said softly, "Let me take a look at that for you," He reached towards Draco's side and pulled up his shirt. He held in a soft gasp as Draco's wound was revealed.

"So Potter...can't wait to get your hands on me, can you?" Draco teased, smirking at Harry.

"Oh yeah, baby." Harry shot right back. He stooped down to collect his wand that had rolled away from him in the tumble. Straightening up again he pointed his wand at the wound and healed it. Draco sighed in relief but stopped shortly. Harry remembered what he had said about his ribs and methodically began pressing each one to determine the broken one.

The first three on the right side got no reaction out of Draco, but the fourth made him breathe in sharply. Harry waved his wand over it muttering. The skin which had the beginnings of a bruise on it, quickly turned to its original alabaster colour. Harry admired Draco's chest discretely, under the pretence of checking for more broken ribs. Deciding he had stared enough, he lowered Draco's shirt and began healing the cuts on Draco's arms.

"Well that's all of them," Harry said letting go of Draco's arm, "Is there anything else that..."

Harry trailed off. Draco had been staring at him with almost burning eyes. They seemed to see right into Harry's soul. He shook his head once, still looking at Harry.

Harry blinked. "Okay then," He said, breaking eye contact with Draco, "We should get going." He turned towards the direction they were going to walk, but paused when Draco wrapped his fingers around Harry's arm. Harry winced. Unknowingly, Draco had pressed on one of the cuts on Harry's arm.

Harry turned back to face Draco and waited to see what he wanted. Draco said nothing however and just raised his arm. Wordlessly he healed the cuts on Harry's arm. The pain disappeared and Harry looked at Draco with a confused expression on his face. _Did he really just heal my cuts?_

Draco let go of Harry's arm and walked on.

Harry stared after him for a second but he quickly ran to catch up.

_Like I was saying earlier; you think you know Malfoy but then he does something so incredibly sweet he surprises you..._

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They had been walking for about an hour now and Harry was pondering the competition. Something occurred to him.

"Draco..." Harry began, "Do we have to finish the maze on the third day, or can we do it in a shorter amount of time?"

Draco stopped in his tracks and turned to look at Harry. Harry looked back expectantly.

"Well..." Draco said thoughtfully, "I don't remember Dumbledore saying we _had_ to do it in three days. I mean, if we did it in two we would probably win for certain."

They both froze. Today was the second day and it was fast approaching dusk. Simultaneously they looked at each other. They started off again at a faster pace than before.

At least...until they came face to face with the next obstacle.

It was a sphinx. It had the body of an overlarge lion; great clawed paws, and a long yellowish tail ending in a brown curl. Its head however, was that of a woman. She turned her long, almond-shaped eyes upon Harry and Malfoy as they approached. Harry didn't bother raising his wand, remembering the Triwizard Tournament, but Malfoy did. Again, she was not crouching as if to attack but pacing from side to side of the path, blocking the way.

Then she spoke, in a deep, horse voice. "You are both very near your goal. The quickest way is past me." Harry stayed silent, knowing she wouldn't just move because they asked her to.

Instead he said, "So what is the riddle?" Malfoy gave a Harry an incredulous look as if to say 'why would a sphinx give us a riddle?!' He was quickly proved wrong.

The sphinx smiled, opened her mouth and began to recite:

"_My life can be measured in hours,  
I serve by being devoured.  
Thin, I am quick  
Fat, I am slow  
Wind is my foe.  
What am I?"_

Harry gaped at her. Malfoy stood with a pondering expression on his face.

_Life measured in hours? Like a clock or something that's used to tell time._ Harry began to think._ Serves by being devoured... so something that tells the time by being devoured. I'm pretty sure it's not a clock then. _Harry stood stumped. _It can be fat or thin and wind is its foe. What on earth? _

"A candle." Malfoy answered with a smile. Harry turned and stared at him.

The sphinx smiled and moved out of the way. Harry and Malfoy walked on past it and turned the next corner.

"How on earth did you figure that out?" Harry asked Malfoy, an admiring expression on his face. Malfoy smirked and looked modest.

"It wasn't that difficult" he said, "Mother used to tell me all sorts of different ones when I was younger." He stopped. Apparently the memory of his mother was painful. Harry had heard she 

wasn't dead but she was quite traumatised by the war. A silence fell on them again. Harry couldn't stand it if an awkward silence like before settled on them so he quickly said the first thing that came to mind.

"So do you think we're close to the middle then?" Harry blurted out. Draco turned to Harry, relief showing on his face for the change of subject.

"Well, the sphinx said we were so we should be soon." Draco replied, "What do you think we'll find?" Harry thought about that one. Dumbledore hadn't actually told them what they would find in the middle of the maze. He hoped it wasn't a cup though. _Too many bad memories_, Harry thought.

"I'm not sure," Harry said thoughtfully, "We'll have to see when we get there." He turned and grinned at Malfoy before turning back to the path.

"Point Me," Harry whispered for the last time. The wand turned and pointed straight towards a left turning ahead. Harry and Malfoy hurried their steps and almost began running towards the centre of the maze. They skidded round the corner and stopped.

In front of them was a stone raised arch and on a pedestal was a golden chalice. Harry sighed in relief and looked at Malfoy.

"Don't relax just yet Potter." Malfoy warned, indicating to the right with his head. Harry turned his head and saw Terry and Hannah. The chalice and arch was equal distance from each pair and all four of them froze, working out the distances in their heads.

"Ready Potter," Draco said out of the corner of his mouth. Harry saw Terry whisper something to Hannah.

"On the count of three," he continued, "1...2...3!" All four of them started for the chalice and raced for the arch. An unearthly wind blew up around them. It whipped against Harry's face and made his eyes sting. He kept going though and pushed forwards through it.

Vines came from the hedges and tried to grasp at all four's ankles. Harry jumped and leapt over them, firing diffindo spells were he could. Draco next to him was doing the same. Terry and Hannah were not though.

The arch was coming closer and closer and Malfoy and Harry were pulling into the lead. A particularly vicious vine swiped Harry across the forehead and blood dripped down into his eye. Wiping furiously he almost stumbled but Malfoy grasped his elbow just in time. Smiling gratefully, Harry carried on running.

A yell from behind them, made Harry turn his head. Terry and Hannah had been caught by the vines and slammed hard into the ground. Harry froze. He was so near the chalice, could he stop now? Seeing Hannah's tear stained face as the vines pulled them closer to the bottom of the hedge made him make up his mind.

"Malfoy!" he shouted. Draco had carried on running but stopped at Harry's shout. He turned back and saw Terry and Hannah. He rolled his eyes.

"Bloody Gryffindor tendencies," he muttered but ran back to Harry. Together they each reached Terry and Hannah in time and cast diffindo. The vines broke and Harry pulled up Hannah whilst Malfoy helped Terry up. All four of them looked at the chalice again. It was mere metres away. Terry started forwards but Hannah grasped his elbow.

"Don't," she said softly, looking into his eyes, "Let them have it." Terry nodded at her and inclined his head to Malfoy.

Harry and Draco walked together and made their way up towards the chalice. Draco grasped one of the handles and waited for Harry. Harry hesitated though, thinking of the Triwizard Cup and Cedric.

"Harry...it'll be fine," Draco said smiling, "I promise." Harry nodded, the use of his first name did it and he clutched the other handle.

Instantly, Harry felt a jerk somewhere behind his navel. His feet ha d left the ground. He could not unclench his hand around the Survival Chalice; it was pulling him onwards, in a howl or wind and swirling colour, Draco at his side.

They landed; Harry wobbly and Draco gracefully, in front of the stadiums. The crowds were cheering and Dumbledore was standing on a podium, beaming at them. The two boys were sweaty and slightly sweaty but feeling invigorated. They straightened up, both still connected by the chalice. Dumbledore started to speak and the roaring crowd quietened immediately.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I must confess something to you," Dumbledore began, his eyes twinkling, "I had an ulterior motive when I organised this Survival Competition. I had hoped it would bring all four houses closer together and as Mr Potter and Mr Malfoy demonstrated, it has." He beamed at Harry, pointing towards a screen that displayed a picture of the arch and where the chalice had been. The crowd had obviously been watching the contestants at different intervals in the competition.

Harry's face flushed and he snuck a look at Draco. Malfoy also looked slightly pink but raised his head high at the Slytherins. He didn't have to worry about his reputation being shattered however, as the Slytherins stood and gave their leader a standing ovation. Harry turned towards the Gryffindors and smiled at Hermione and Ron who were grinning at Harry, their hands clasped tightly together. Harry grinned back and the Gryffindors, who thought he had been smiling at them, stood up and cheered loudly. Harry rolled his eyes slightly and mocked bowed towards them. The spectators left the crowds and swarmed around Harry and Draco. Hands clapped him on the back, but Harry only had eyes for one person.

Draco was standing, looking at Harry with that same burning expression in his eyes. Harry didn't break eye contact this time and moved closer to him. Draco looking a little surprised, quickly looked around, but nevertheless looked back at Harry. Harry couldn't figure out Draco Malfoy; he had seemed like the perfect death eater son but had proved Harry wrong by converting to the light, he had also seemed heartless but rescued Terry and Hannah with Harry and healed Harry's arms. Draco had a puzzled expression on his face but it cleared after a few moments. He bent his head down and whispered into Harry's ear.

"Meet me tonight" He winked once and turned back to his Slytherin friends. Harry smiled and headed towards Hermione and Ron.

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**All finished...for the moment. If you wish for me to up the rating and add a smutty scene at the end then review and tell me :) **


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own Monsieur Potter et Monsieur Malfoy. I just make them do naughty things ;)**

**Now, for the long awaited epilogue. Well to some people it might be... I got a little put off by someone calling my story a 'mediocre start for a shagfest'. Which it kind of is, but hey, you don't see me insulting anybody else's stories!**

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It had taken Harry hours to get away from all the Gryffindors intent on clapping his back and shoving yet another glass of Butterbeer into his hand. The amount Harry had consumed tonight was enough to get atleast ten House elves drunk, but it made Harry's head feel pleasantly light. Harry was not drunk. No, definitely not. He was just happy...yes that was it. He was happy.

_Hmmm Hermione hadn't thought so when she was giving me those worried looks at the party._

The party in the Common room had started when Harry had come out of the maze. His fans were apparently deaf to his pleas to be allowed to have a shower before the festivities. He was instantly bombarded with food, drinks and even in some cases; girls. Now Harry couldn't help feeling a little unnerved. The girls were quite blatantly flirting with him, but all Harry wanted to do was go to-

Harry refused to finish that thought.

All through the party he had been worrying whether or not it was a good idea to go and see Draco after all. Firstly, he would be going into the Slytherin Common Rooms. Yes, Harry had defeated the Dark Lord and helped free most of them from a life of servitude to Voldemort, but that simply did not matter when faced with blatant disregard of social norms. Gryffindors just _did not_ go into the Slytherin common rooms. Harry of course, obviously happened to know a lot of Gryffindor who sneakily _did_ go into their common room. He quickly ignored this thought as it did not help his argument against why he shouldn't go to Draco's tonight.

Secondly, it was Draco! He and Harry had been enemies, well... Enemy was a bit to strong of a word. They definitely weren't friends. More like MAR: Mutually Assured Rivals. They both had enough power to do a lot of damage to each other if they got into a duel. Harry could probably win in the long run but he had no idea what kind of dark curses Lucius Malfoy had taught his son. The strangling curse had been bad enough. See! That was exactly what Harry was on about! Friends or even acquaintances did not strangle each other.

That brought Harry to his last argument. Draco obviously did not have _real_ feelings whatsoever towards Harry. If he did, he wouldn't have used that curse on him. Wishing death on someone usually didn't translate to '_I want to sex you up'_. He must be trying to trick Harry into coming to his dorms then doing something very Slytherin and conniving. Not that there was much difference between those two things.

But then again..., Harry thought.

Draco had saved him in the maze when they had encountered that boggart. He even seemed- dare Harry say it- nice when Harry had woke up upset. He had told Harry personal things that would almost certainly get him teased in Slytherin and seemed to trust him not to repeat them. Harry 

wouldn't of course. Not because he had _feelings_ or anything for Draco, he just was a decent person. Yes that was it- a decent person.

_And denial is not just a river in Egypt._

Harry sighed. Currently he was pacing backwards and forwards, tracing a line in the carpet. He had escaped the party by feigning falling asleep on the sofa. Apparently Gryffindors are not known for their intelligence. Dean, Seamus and Ron had picked him up and tossed him into bed about an hour ago. Harry had taken a shower, dressed and had been pacing ever since.

Draco had used that curse on him... but Harry had picked a fight with him first. He had just been so stressed out in the maze and then Draco just _had _to be sarcastic about his healing abilities. It had been the last straw and Harry had snapped at him. Draco was proud and had instantly jumped to a defensive position and so the whole stupid argument had multiplied into a full blown fight.

But the most important factor was the way Harry felt. He had looked at Draco right before they separated and he hadn't seen any faked emotions or hidden agendas. All he had seen was honest trust and openness, and something else. Something Harry really did not want to examine at the moment.

What if Draco was waiting for him... and Harry just didn't go. He would surely be hurt.

_Right, _Harry thought,_ I'm going. _He stopped pacing abruptly and pulled his Invisibility cloak out from his trunk, tugging it on quickly. Thinking ahead, he snatched the Marauders Map as well. He made his way down into the common room, dodging people on the stairs and the common room. He passed Hermione on his way down. She was making her way towards the Girl's dormitories when she stopped. Harry too froze, thinking he had touched her and she would realise he was there. She started moving again however and Harry breathed a sigh of relief. She passed him quickly and Harry could just make out a whisper.

"Have a good night Harry."

He drew in a sharp breath and looked towards her. She was still walking towards the steps and if Harry hadn't known her so well, he would have missed the slight smile tugging on the corners of her mouth. He grinned, recognising acceptance when he saw it. If Hermione didn't have a problem with it then Ron shouldn't...

Actually that was going way too far. Ron would flip out and Harry knew it.

He threaded his way through the throng of people and reached the portrait. He pushed it outwards and took the corridor to his left. It should take him towards the Slytherin dormitories. Also the dungeons, Harry thought belatedly. God it would be bloody awful if he met Snape halfway. Not a visit that would put one in the mood. He sped up, wanting to get to the Slytherin common rooms before he met the greasy haired Potions master.

The air was starting to get cooler as he got further down into the castle. He didn't know how the Slytherins could bear it. It was bloody freezing. Harry stuck the map inside his pocket and rubbed his hands together. He wouldn't need it right now. He walked on steadily towards- what felt like- his doom.

He reached that familiar damp piece of stone wall. Actually no it wasn't familiar per say, he had just seen about 200 metres of the same wall. Just to check he pulled out the map and tapped it. As Harry muttered the revealing words, the map's lines inked in and Harry found himself on the map. He had been right and was now currently in front of the Slytherin Common Room. He scanned the map quickly. He couldn't see Draco in the common room but as he looked closer, he located him in a room up some stairs and to the left. Typical the Slytherin would get his own rooms.

He tucked the map back into his pocket and took a deep breath. All he needed to do now was-

The wall slid back as a small first year walked out cautiously. Harry held his breath and quickly squeezed his way into the Common room making sure he didn't touch the student on the way. He made it just as the wall slid back into position. In front of him was a common room that had obviously been subjected to the same celebrations as the Gryffindor one. Hastily made banners were strung up and a few dozen students were still up, milling around drinking and dancing. From the look of it, they were drinking a lot stronger stuff than the Gryffindor. Where on earth they got it was a mystery to Harry. Again, he put his weaving tactics into use and swiftly moved in between all the students until he got to the stairs. They weren't quite as winding as the Gryffindor ones, but even Harry- who was fit from Quidditch- could feel himself getting a little out of breath. He was certainly relieved when he reached the top of the steps.

Remembering what he had seen from the map, he turned left and followed the corridor down till he reached the door on the end. He gripped the handle tightly and opened the door slowly.

There was no one in the room.

Harry moved further in and shut the door quietly behind him. He was still in his invisibility cloak so if he was in someone else's room by accident, he could quickly creep out. Scanning the surroundings he noticed some Potions textbooks on the desk by the bed. Now that Harry looked, he realised the bed was bloody massive! It was decked out in Slytherin colours of course, but big enough for at least four people. Harry shivered slightly, thinking of what they could do with that much space. Remembering what he came for in the first place, he picked up a Potion book and flipped the cover page over. Scrawled on the first page was a very swirly 'Draco Malfoy'. Obviously Harry had got the room right. He pulled off his cloak, feeling a little warm, and sat down lightly on the incredibly soft bed. Oh god that felt brilliant! After sleeping in a tent for a few nights (1) Harry's back was begging for something of this softness. He sighed and laid down fully, his arms out to his sides. He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply a delightful smell. It was like cinnamon and vanilla. Exactly what Harry liked with his coffee to be exact. Not that that was relevant at the moment but what the hell.

A door opening in front of Harry made him jerk his head up and stare wide eyed at the person entering. Not the best place for someone to catch him; lying down on Draco Malfoy's bed. As he gazed at the person, he realised he would gladly take all the embarrassment for this situation if he could have this view again. Draco Malfoy fully clothed was gorgeous but Draco Malfoy in just a towel was breath taking. He stared in wonder, completely unaware that his mouth was hanging wide open, until a cough snapped him out of his thoughts.

He quickly raised his eyes to Draco's, who was looking at him in amusement. Harry smiled sheepishly before realising he was still spread eagle on Draco's bed. He jumped off quickly in a movement that would certainly make his back ache later on.

Harry scratched the back of his neck nervously and smiled hesitantly at Draco.

"Erm... I was just...you know...erm waiting for you..." He stuttered out, "you well weren't here so I laid down and it was-"

He cut himself off, closing his eyes tightly. He sounded like a complete idiot. God what the hell was Draco Malfoy doing with him. Hearing no noise from Draco he opened his eyes again. He was just standing there, leaning casually against the door with his arms folded. He was half smiling, half smirking at Harry, but not the usual malicious smirk he usually gave him. No, it was sort of warm and teasing. He however, didn't make any movements towards Harry or to get changed.

A cold feeling of dread began to make its way down into Harry's gut. Maybe this was a mistake, maybe Draco didn't even mean for Harry to come tonight. Maybe Harry had heard him wrong. He started to edge towards the door.

"Sorry," he said, "I've obviously got the wrong idea. I'll just leave you alone now" He turned and reached for the door handle. A hand resting lightly on his hip made him freeze.

"No," a voice whispered in his ear, lightly sending shivers down Harry's spine, "I don't think you have"

Harry was spun around and crushed against the door as a pair of lips came crashing down on his. He gasped slightly at the pressure and hesitantly opened his mouth. Draco had almost been waiting for Harry to respond and as soon as he did, he moved his tongue to explore Harry's mouth. The kiss was wet but nothing like that cold fish Cho's had been.

Harry got more into the kiss and wound his arms around Draco's back. It was still naked and a bead of water would make its way down it now and again. Draco gripped the waist band of Harry's trousers- his shirt had obviously come off without him noticing- and Harry grabbed them nervously. He broke the kiss for a second, looking hesitantly at Draco's face.

_Was he doing the right thing?_ Doubts made their way to the front of Harry's mind again but as he looked at Draco they cleared away quickly. His face was completely open, vulnerable. Like nothing Harry had seen on his face before. It made him feel privileged almost to be this close to him. Seeing that Draco was waiting for him to be ready, he leant forwards and kissed him again, forcibly moving his arms to thread in Draco's hair instead. It actually felt like silk, even when it was wet from his shower.

Draco had pulled down Harry's trousers and he kicked them off his feet. At least he tried to. They got stuck on his shoes and he over balanced. Harry tipped backwards and dragged Draco with him. They landed heavily on the floor, Draco on top of Harry. Harry winced as his head hit the side of a bedside table but forgot the pain as Draco knocked the wind out of him. He gasped for breath and tried to clutch his head at the same time.

"Well Potter," Draco teased, "you definitely know how to set the mood" He laughed loudly at Harry's indignant face, but then kissed his lips in apology. Harry settled into the kiss and sighed softly. As a spear of pain went through his head a second later however, he winced and clutched it again. Draco separated from Harry and moved up his body. Slowly- Harry was terribly confused as to what Draco was doing at this point- he kissed the bump on Harry's head and moved down his body. Harry couldn't help feeling cared for at this point. He may not be sure what his and Draco's feelings where, but he knew it wasn't some kind of trick now.

Draco pulled off Harry's shoes and threw them behind his head. He then dragged off the mischievous trousers and those too where lost somewhere in the room. Harry and Draco were now left in just a towel and boxers. Harry didn't know about Draco, but he was certainly _very_ aroused at this point. Draco laid flat against Harry's body. Oh actually scratch that thought, Draco was _very_ aroused as well. At least the hardness against Harry's inner thigh told him as much.

"You ready?" Draco asked breathily. Harry nodded nervously. He was after all an innocent virgin. Well, it wasn't like he had time to go and sleep with girls while he was fighting the forces of evil, A.K.A Voldemort and co.

Draco slid his own towel off and pulled Harry's boxers down. Harry held his breath until Draco laid back down on him again. Oh god that felt fantastic. Bloody hell why hadn't he done this before? Sure the schematics of the whole thing were different with girls and he hadn't even got down to the actually fucking with Draco, but if that felt this good; Harry was golden. He shifted his hips, trying to get comfortable and almost jumped out of his skin at the rush of pleasure as his cock shifted against Draco's. Draco just groaned though as if he had been expecting something like this to happen. Harry belatedly began to wonder exactly how many people Draco had slept with. His thoughts were cut short though.

"Stop thinking" Draco ordered and unexpectedly waved his wand over Harry. A rush of cold in Harry's insides and the strange sensation of being loosened made him gasp.

"Sorry" Draco apologised, "it will make it easier" Harry nodded slightly, still trying to escape from the coldness, when Draco penetrated him. He clutched Draco's shoulders and tried to open his legs a little wider. Draco was inching in slowly and even though he had prepared Harry with the spell, he could still feel a slight burn of pain. He breathed in and out shakily, trying to get used to the new sensation. Draco finally stopped and let out a rush of air. He steadied himself and looked at Harry.

Harry was starting to wonder why people liked having sex. This certainly was not enjoyable. It felt pretty boring if Harry was honest. Sort of like being impaled on a pole and then left there. He shifted to the left minutely, wondering if maybe he could get Draco to slip out so he could escape. A sudden rush of pleasure made him stop and fall backwards to hit his head on the bedside table again. The pain was completely ignored this time as he moaned loudly. Oh god this was so much better than he had originally thought. Draco seemed to be waiting for this reaction and pulled out almost to the tip. He drove back into Harry hitting that lovely spot again.

They set up a rhythm of Draco thrusting and Harry moaning loudly. He tried desperately to stop, but Draco seemed to be aiming for spots in Harry that had him screaming in pleasure. _Probably a secret _

_fantasy of his; Harry Potter screaming beneath him, _Harry thought,_ maybe not in the way I am right now though..._

Harry, though he attempted to stop himself, came quickly and slumped exhaustedly on Draco's bedroom floor. Draco finished soon after Harry and collapsed on his chest. After gaining enough energy, Harry began to comb through Draco's hair with his fingers. It was a nice feeling, lying here on Draco's floor.

"Harry," Draco said softly. Harry froze shocked. Was Draco making a habit of calling him by his name?

"How many brain cells do you think you've lost by hitting your head tonight? You don't have that many left" He continued, lifting his head. Obvious affection was shining through his eyes.

_**HPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMHPDMH**_

**End of shag fest folks. Hopefully I added some emotions in there and didn't have them just rolling around on the floor like animals. If they were, then the 10,000ish words before were a complete waste. Tell me what you think. **


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